quick story

i made a spice cake for lucas birthday.. but i put it in the oven too far back and it rose right up into our large oven thermometer. so when i took it out i had to decide whether to "patch" the hole and cover it with icing, or what... this was my solution, since lu just loves trucks..

theres new pictures up for june now, and im busy uploading 9 new videos right now.. and should all be up before the weekend is over.

the whole enchilada!

i have been trying to make good enchiladas for years it seems and i finally found my recipe! i usually do ground beef & cheese inside the corn tortillas... here's the sauce:

butter & flour like you're doin' a roux
add garlic, a smashed up chicken bullion cube, cumin & chili powder (optional)
and a 6-oz can of tomato paste
plus ~2.5 cups water (to desired texture)
salt & pepper

random news items

lucas learned how to pedal his trike this week!

ruby can now roll in both directions!

it's hotter'n blazes here now, we're going to install our window unit soon.

the swimming pool is finally open, but we're much more likely to be found at the spray fountains in the parks.

we're thinking about what kinds of short trips we'd like to take this summer.. new york to visit friends, the beach, cape cod, maine or vermont... ? we'll see.. but first,

we have visitors coming! my dad is coming next week, and then the following weekend our best friends the sweeneys are coming, too! lucky us!

walkin' yes indeed

a few weeks ago i joined in a walking program and they sent me a free pedometer and whatever else. the reason i joined is because of the free pedometer, see, i've been wondering since we moved here how much walking i do on a daily basis.. since it is my primary form of transportation.

the preliminary results are: at minimum 2.5 miles per day, doing nothing special.. which includes going to the park and grocery store. but on "busy" days, when our playdates take us further afield, i'm averaging 4.5 miles per day.

i really like walking, and i REALLY like not having a car, with all its concerns & expenses.. i do recognize the benefits of having a car, especially with a family (we rent one whenever we have a need) - but, well, vive la pedestrianism!

ruby's makin' moves

today, ruby started rolling over intentionally (back to front)!!

the most recent dr, visit was 4-months,, she weighs 7.03kg/15.5lbs. and is 64cm/25.25in tall. her head circumference is 41 cm. she holds her head up well and has pretty much mastered the sweeping grasp (and has good grip!)

and the brightest smile, too..


fyi, i keep forgetting to mention... we posted new videos at the same time as the may pics

long post about lu being 2

lucas is starting to say more words, constructing "sentences" with words & gestures. for example, he might say; "oo" "water" and make a big arm gesture.. meaning he ran through the water and got his "oos" (shoes) all wet. and repeating after the words we say. i say, okay now step into your pants-leg. and he says "tep" (step)..

my best example is this: two days last week he threw sand in someone's face! once in mine and once at a little boy. not to be mean, just to be two.. my response was swift both times.. i picked him up saying "no, we dont throw sand at people" and strapped him in the stroller to go directly home. but he didnt cry either time or even seem disappointed. he was like "okay, where are we going now?" and i wasnt sure he quite understood.

but several days later we were at another park and i saw him coming across the park with a hand full of sand, so i raised my eyebrows and said "what're you gonna do with that?" he came over, big smiles and threw it on the ground right in front of my feet and said "(gesture: throw) mama... go (gesture: pointing to park gate)...(mumble, concerned look, tucked chin, shaking head no)... no!". and i was sooooo proud. not only is this probably his biggest sentence to date, but its a big concept to boot!

and he's terrified of flies, it's kinda cute actually. the other day he came into the office after quietly playing by himself in the living room for several minutes, crying, pointing to the living room saying "bvvvvv" "bee, bee" (because somehow they never put illustrations of common houseflies in the picture book, but bees are in every one.. more colorful i guess.) so i went in and did what anyone would have.. i opened the window and waited until the fly landed on the screen and then closed the window, trying not to think about how many days it might last in there, and telling myself it couldnt be too long since they have a lifespan of 3 days or something. he felt safe then, and still points to the window, saying "bvvvv".

back to the communication skills... he points what way we should turn down the street, and says "way", and looks for a "giddy" (kitty) in every window, grabs a snack and say's "one?" as in : can i have one? or "deux?" as in: can i have more? (thats the french word for two, y'all). "duce" for juice. "woo-woo" for hotDOG.. ehh,. hmmm, hard to explain THAT to him... and "bomme" (pomme) for apple. when i say "can you say 'please'?" he says, (batting his eyelashes) "ma-ma?"

and if we come home after spending ALL day out, he whines, crying big alligator tears at the front door, pointing down the driveway saying "go! go!" meaning: i want to stay outside, lets go to the park or grocery store or whatever! anything but going inside mama! but (depending on my mood) we go inside anyway and i say "look honey, we're going! we're going INSIDE!" ha ha .. occasionally we give in to his requests, after all he's 2 and needs his sense of autonomy.

summers here

well school's out finally.. lots of red gowns in cambridge. many people we got to know moving away, specifically kathryn & john, and ilse. i have been the person moving away too many times, and for once i can say i'm glad we're staying here awhile.

happy birthday to me,,,,

i slept in til 8am (that's LATE around here), had vietnamese lunch with philippe, my girlfriend & her 2 kids came for an afternoon coffee, then a portuguese dinner & ice cream bars! and philippe got me a subscription to dwell magazine. i'm set!

our birthday party

was fun. we originally wanted to have it last week, but we all got sick.. sinus and sore throats - wasnt too serious, but no fun. so we did it this weekend instead. lucas turned 2 and i'm turning 33 on monday. there were a nice amount of people adults and kids mixed, some food, drinks (we bought too many - ha! only 18 beers consumed by 9 adults) 3 cakes (one for lucas, one for me, and one came as a potluck contribution) and a trip around to the playground to splash in the fountain there because it was sooo hot. lucas got 3 "guders" (trucks, in lu-speak), a wheelbarrow, a monster bowling set, two original pieces of art from his peers, 3 books, and a deck of animal flashcards.